How to do the right kind of "rise" in slowfox

[dream a little dream]

Okay, admittedly I am very new to SlowFox, but I struggle with this every time I do it.

I always want to rise from the knees when I do SlowFox...is this right?  I have been told that I should be doing "body rise" and not "knee rise" and certainly not "foot rise".  How can I dance SlowFox and not rise from the knees?
Anyone have any ideas or am I just way off base?

[Some guy]

What a great topic!!!  I would love to hear more on this.  I know we have some experts and highly ranked dancers on here that can help. 

My two cents: just because it was taught to me as "walking to music", the same way our knees don't become the focus when walking, they get overly focussed on when dancing Foxtrot.  "Body rise"? ...still trying to understand that. 

[QPO]

I believe and I hope that the Pros here will explain it better.. I believe it comes from the ankles and the stretching of the body that give the rise,n the man has a lot of contra body twist to keep his body in the direction of the feet.

I am happy to be stand corrected

[ZPomeroy]

from what i understand, the lady elongates her body as much as possible, using hips, stomach knees and ankles which allows a slight raise. There are some circumstances where the lasy must rise such as a reverse wave, these steps use the exact same technique as the male counterpart steps: a heel toe, toe, toe lower rise.

[Dora-Satya Veda]

That is a great question, dream a little dream. I have always learned there are many different kinds of rise. It all depends on the step that you are dancing and what “school of thought” you are following to which rises are used when.

Sorry for such a vague answer.

[Some guy]

Coincidentally, "dream a little dream [of me]" sung by "Beautiful South" is a wonderful foxtrot!

[dream a little dream]

I haven't heard the song by Beautiful South, but it does make a nice foxtrot, doesn't it?

[QPO]

I love foxtrot music, is just makes you feel good....

[Vagabond]

Slow Fox and Crooners............Golden Combos'

[Some guy]

I haven't heard the song by Beautiful South, but it does make a nice foxtrot, doesn't it?

Oh my gosh!  Youtube it now!  You'll love it! The lady that sings it is young, but she has the perfect voice and tone for the song.  It's from an old Meg Ryan movie. 

The other singer that I didn't expect to be able to depict a foxtrot purely with his voice is Michael Buble.  I think he's a great singer, but he blew me away with his rendition of "Mack the Knife".  He "dances" foxtrot with his voice.  I tried dancing to his voice and not the beat, and it was the best foxtrot interpretation I've ever done.  It really gives you the feeling of "owning" the music as opposed to being "pwned" [sic] by the music (sorry, computer/console gamer lingo). 

[QPO]

Oh I agree, you can't sit still, but our coach showes something last night about Foxtrot, he did it without his arms and just used his body, so show us the illusion of the swing component.. it is not as big as people think. It was a very interesting excercise

[TangoDancer]

On the subject of rise, DSV is correct. Re the standard rise that results within the walk, ZP is headed there. The lady's rise is different from the guy's. She has what the books unenlightening refer to as BRNFR...body rise, no foot rise. However, if you can imagine it, be a marionette with a string at the crown of the head, and another at the top of the sternum. As the ankles are coming together, and as the foot is weighted, the pupeteer lifts both strings simultaneously, thus lifting the body, not from the bottom up, but from the top down. Here's the thing; rememebr the part about "as" the foot is weighted? You should feel that the body is being pulled apart...grounded from the waist down while rising from waist up.

At least fairly aware for a lead, I know. I missed this on a certification exam, and wll never forget it.   

[ahowlett1]

Here's an interesting thought for you... Why does foxtrot use quick rise and waltz use gradual rise for the majority of figures?

[SwingWaltz]

Foxtrot is a more linear dance than the waltz? So having a quick rise connects the steps better?

[Some guy]

Here's an interesting thought for you... Why does foxtrot use quick rise and waltz use gradual rise for the majority of figures?

I don't understand the question.  I feel like there's not too much of a difference in the speeds of the rise (not considering music tempo).  If I were to take a whack at it, I'd say Foxtrot has a more gradual rise due to the travel involved.  The more stretched out the rise, the more the body will be able to travel.  Am I completely off base?